Koster
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (Legal Newsline) - Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster announced on Tuesday that he would like to see any settlement agreement with the nation's largest banks concerning robo-signatures to include mortgage loss mitigation measures.
Serious discussions between the 50-state group and the banking industry began in Washington this week and Koster expressed his pleasure that efforts are underway to stabilize the mortgage market.
"I believe the efforts of the 50-state working group will lead to measures to insure the integrity of foreclosures and fair-dealing with those who are losing their homes," Koster said.
"While there were many causes of the financial crises affecting homeowners, banking procedures -- such as robo-signing -- clearly have inhibited a return to stability."
Koster said that the banks' alleged questionable practices regarding mortgage securitization and robo-signing should hold them accountable to mitigate the loss of home value experienced by homeowners.
Koster said he is hopeful that a resolution on the matter will happen in the next three months that contains substantive changes to banking procedures and bank contributions that could account for mortgage write-downs in the tens of billions of dollars.
Key provisions Koster and the group are seeking include tougher standards for documents in foreclosure and bankruptcy proceedings, stricter requirements for accuracy and verification of borrower's account information, and proper documentation for all note-holder status and chain of assignment.
The group is also looking to step up training, quality assurance systems and audits.